An emergency protective order has been issued against an Alexandria man after he allegedly stabbed his girlfriend’s son in the face with a fork on New Year’s Day.
The 41-year-old suspect was arrested and charged with malicious wounding after the incident, which occurred at around 11:30 a.m. in an apartment at the 5300 block of Essex Court in the West End, near the Winkler Botanical Preserve.
The city of Alexandria will host a virtual meeting this Thursday covering the pre-construction phase of renovations at City Hall and Market Square.
Currently in its architectural and engineering design phase, the multimillion-dollar project includes renovations at City Hall, a redesign of Market Square and an underground parking garage. More than 300 city employees have already relocated to temporary swing spaces, and the rest are expected to do so by the end of the month, according to a city announcement.
After a reported uptick in flu, COVID-19 and other illnesses in the city, the Alexandria Health Department is recommending the flu shot and and other preventative measures to stay healthy.
Flu-related emergency department visits more than tripled in Alexandria during the last two weeks of December, according to data from the Virginia Department of Health. Alexandria’s current flu vaccination rate is low, sitting at less than 30% of the population, AHD spokesperson Eve Elliott told ALXnow.
Old Town-based Burke & Herbert Bank is expanding its reach after acquiring a Pennsylvania bank in a multimillion-dollar deal.
Burke & Herbert is acquiring Camp Hill, Pa.-based LinkBank for $354.2 million, a deal expected to close in the second half of 2026. The merger will expand the bank into Pennsylvania and increase its footprint to 100 locations across six states, according to a press release.
The Planning Commission will host a work session tomorrow (Tuesday) on a draft plan for the future of Duke Street.
Still in its infancy, the Duke Street Land Use Plan is intended to guide city officials in the development of the Duke Street corridor from the former Landmark Mall to Alexandria Union Station. The document is expected to be ready for City Council consideration and adoption from late 2026 to early 2027, according to the city.
On This Day in Alexandria History — “On Jan. 5, 1874, the old George’s Tavern, also known as the Old English House on the northwest corner of Cameron and North Royal Streets, caught fire and was severely damaged, burned beyond repair. Seen in the background of this Civil War era photo of Union soldiers taken in front of Gadsby’s Tavern, the dormered building is further marked by a large horizontal sign extending over the public sidewalk reading ‘Restaurant.'” [Historic Alexandria]
Beyer Responds to Military Strike in Venezuela — “I’ve always opposed American attacks on Venezuela and I oppose them now. You don’t need sympathy for Maduro to grasp that attacking another country for unclear, shifting rationales without domestic support or a clear plan for the day after won’t make us safer. The Administration lied to Congress and launched an illegal war for regime change and oil. Foolhardy and wrong.” [Rep. Don Beyer]
Good Friday evening, Alexandria. Let’s take a look back at today’s stories and a look forward to tomorrow’s event calendar.
The following articles were published earlier today — Jan 2, 2026.
Here are today’s most-read articles:
Since it’s Friday, we’ve also compiled a list of the most-read articles of the week, below.
Here is what’s going on Saturday in Alexandria, from our event calendar.
The weather will be mostly cloudy with a high around 36 degrees and a light north wind. On Saturday night, there’s a slight chance of snow before 1am, followed by a transition from cloudy to partly cloudy skies and a low temperature near 27 degrees. The chance of precipitation is 20%, with calm winds throughout. See more from Weather.gov.
“Opportunities don’t happen, you create them.”
– Chris Grosser
We hope you have a great weekend, Alexandria!
Battalion chiefs at the Alexandria Fire Department do not qualify for overtime wages, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ruled on Wednesday, siding with the city and affirming a lower district court’s 2023 judgment.
The plaintiffs, 10 current and former AFD battalion chiefs, had sued the department for unpaid overtime wages. Chief Judge Albert Diaz issued the deciding opinion in the case, stating that the chiefs were exempt from overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act due to being “highly compensated employees,” a distinction that separates them from rank-and-file first responders under the city’s collective bargaining agreement.
Alexandria closed out 2025 with median apartment rental rates down 2.5% from the start of the year — the first annual decline in five years.
The 2.5% dip is more than twice the rate of decline across the metro area, with Alexandria pushed down in part by a 1.1% drop in median rents from November to December.
It’s time to start taking those Christmas trees down.
Christmas tree collection in Alexandria starts today (Friday) and will last through Friday, Jan. 16. The city will pick up natural Christmas trees and wreaths at residents’ usual waste collection spots during their regularly scheduled collection.
Old Town Food Pantry Meets Increasing Need — “The Diocese of Arlington’s annual report indicates 25,677 meals were served at Christ House in 2025, up about 25 percent from the previous year. John Croft, the director of Christ House, told Patch that an average 60 guests are coming in for meals, along with about 14 men served in Christ House’s transitional housing.” [Patch]
New VA Law Limits Teens’ Social Media Usage — “A new Virginia law that goes into effect Jan. 1 requires social media companies to limit kids’ usage to one hour each day … A group that lobbies on behalf of social media companies is trying to stop the law. The group is called NetChoice and it filed a lawsuit in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia just last month.” [NBC4 Washington]
